An independent filmmaker's struggle for justice begins after he's framed by an online critic for making a snuff film.
Taapmaan is a hard-hitting, dark action drama about an independent filmmaker whose only wish is to become the kind of filmmaker he wants to be. He has been struggling since quite long but still has nobody standing by his side. In addition to this, his not-so-successful career gets affected badly when an online critic, with whose opinion he had once disagreed, gets him framed for making a snuff film. When he's not provided justice, he gets shattered from within and proclaims openly to sacrifice his speech unless he gets justice. But in the age of digital media, isn't he just another guy who wants his work to be seen and appreciated? His battle intensifies when time passes by and lack of justice makes him brutal and extremely angry.—Prashast Singh
The protagonist (Prashast Singh) is an independent filmmaker who wants to get his next film released theatrically. Due to some weird commercial reasons, the distributor disagrees to release his film. As the protagonist sits hopeless now, he gets a call from his friend that something has gone wrong. He further gets called and summoned by the court for making a snuff film. He realizes that he has been framed by an abusive online film critic with whose opinion he had once disagreed. Time passes by and soon he finds himself to be a victim of miscarriage of justice. He keeps waiting for justice but turns impatient and angrier than before: using social media, he declares that he won't speak anything until he gets justice and if he doesn't get it, he would even sacrifice his speech. Soon after a few days, he gets attacked at his own home's terrace by the critic.
Two weeks later, as he's still awaiting justice, the protagonist finds it unable to sit silently and becomes violent. He calls his friend and asks him to arrange for a meeting with the critic's secretary. As he comes home, the protagonist knocks him down, gags him and interrogates him. Even upon getting the answers, he is unable to control his rage and breaks into a fight with him. He produces the gathered evidence online to prove his innocence, after which he releases his film online, the success of which brings happiness in his life. After a few days, he gets a call from his friend and he reveals his true colors; he had joined hands with the critic long ago. The protagonist is shocked and heartbroken to the core and in turn decides to write a letter to him, apart from revealing the real nature of both him and the critic with the help of a video captured secretly. Upon getting exposed, the critic comes to meet the protagonist at his home and destroys his camera. A heartbroken and enraged protagonist breaks into a prolonged fight, at the end of which he overpowers the critic and knocks him unconscious. Soon in an unexpected turn, the critic's friend turns up from behind and knocks down the protagonist, warning him "not to mess with a big celeb like the critic".
Two years later, the protagonist is visited by a friend from foreign who expresses his disappointment over the miscarriage of justice, and shows his support. He tells him that his "not speaking" initiative has helped many independent filmmakers like him, but as he asks him to speak something, hoping that he would've got justice by now, the protagonist stands still, silent. The friend gets shocked upon realizing that justice hasn't been served yet and finds it to be unbelievable.
